Where the Sun Can't Reach
by after the sky
Summary: Due to one of Zim's new schemes, Dib finds himself sent to the underground classroom... but what—or who—will he find there?
1. Prologue

A/N: Hello everyone! This story will be pretty deep, I suppose, so do forgive me for anything that may seem OOC… I'm writing this in the summer in the hopes that I will be able to update regularly, but as I am planning to make this a rather long story, there will be some intervals (camp, vacation, the like). But we'll burn that bridge when we come to it, no? I may not even have that problem as this story may not be read much anyway, but I'll do my best on this project, loves! Whether you hate it or love it, please R&R. Thanks.  
  
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A new day. A new day, just as the same as the rest: one full of learning nonsense, eating unsanitary foods (or perhaps passing on eating unsanitary foods), and alien-chasing.   
  
But a new day brought forth another chance to reveal Zim's true identity.  
  
Dib swept a hand through his scythe-like hair, these thoughts dancing around in his large head. He threw a confident smirk at the mirror as he left the closed space of his dark room, taking the stairs two by two and shouting confidently with each nimble bound of his boot-clad feet.  
  
"This is the day! The day when I expose that wretched alien monster! Woo-hoo!"   
  
As Dib swung his bag over his shoulder and dashed out the door, leaving his immensely annoyed sister in his wake, Professor Membrane clicked his tongue and shook his head pityingly. "You'd better follow your insane brother before he does something HORRIBLE!" he advised Gaz, striking a dramatic pose before leaving to start work in his labs. Gaz gave a growl of acknowledgement before shouldering her bag and leaving their home.  
  
Dib made it to Skool in no time, and his small, bespectacled eyes turned straight to look at Zim upon entering the classroom. Zim swiftly hid the strange mechanical device he'd been fooling around with before Dib's entrance under the desk and smiled scathingly at him, his fake lavender eyes narrowing with loathing. Dib returned a similar stare before making his way over to his desk and sitting down. Only a few minutes later, Ms. Bitters's snake-like figure swept its way into the classroom and behind her desk.   
  
Almost immediately, there was the ring of a telephone. Dib, whose eyes hadn't left Zim for a second, was sure he caught Zim subtly moving his hands beneath the desk beforehand…  
  
Ms. Bitters whipped up the phone and spat her irritable "Hello!" There was a pause as all the children blinked wonderingly at the old teacher and she disgustedly listened to what the person on the other end of the line had to say. At last she said, "If you must," and slammed the phone down.  
  
"Children, I am obliged to miserably inform you of a new person's arrival at our class. His name is Piglog." As soon as she had finished this bout of information, the door swung open to reveal a peculiar little short boy… well, at least this is what Zim and Dib's fellow classmates saw, as the both of them knew it was really GIR in his little boy disguise.   
  
"HEY!" Dib snapped. "That's no new kid! That's Zim's robot!"  
  
"Man, Dib, do you have to insult EVERY new person who comes? There's no such thing as aliens! And you should learn to leave poor crazy Zim alone!" The Letter M reprimanded, and a round of agreements rose from the rest of the class. Dib threw a disdainful glare in The Letter M's direction as GIR spoke a greeting that somehow incorporated moose, piggies, old people, and waffles. Zim was snickering to himself.  
  
When GIR had finished at last, Ms. Bitters announced, "We'll have to make room for the new student, class. So this means sending one of you to the underground classroom. Now, let's see who goes…"  
  
At this moment, Zim leapt upon his desk, clutching a sheet of paper in his gloved hands and reading aloud from it in a voice dripping with feigned sweetness: "Since we live in a democratic society where the people vote on certain decisions to be made, I think we should vote on who should be sent to the underground classroom in order to promote this country's democratic structure!" He bowed arrogantly to a round of agreements and then continued, "I think it should be Dib."  
  
"That's the best idea I've heard in a thousand years," Ms. Bitters sneered. "Whoever wants DIB to be sent to the Underground Classroom, raise your hand."  
  
Everyone but Dib and GIR, who was singing quietly to himself, threw their hands into the air.  
  
Ms. Bitters slammed her fist on a button and before Dib could even think about protesting or twisting free from his tight desk space, the ground opened beneath him and a sick feeling entered his stomach as he plummeted into the darkness with only the cruel laughter of the oblivious children—and Zim's crazed maniacal cackle—to accompany him on his ride.  
  
Dib squeezed his eyes shut as his stomach turned with the sickening realization rather than the drop that this was the end of him—the end of the world!  
  
But little did he know, it was only just the beginning. 


	2. The Dark Life

A/N: Thank you for the positive reviews, I really am grateful as I know a lot of people find it painful to review, hehe. Anyway, for you guys, I will continue to do my best to make this story's updates active. Thanks again. (Hey, I just realized I missed Futurama for this :P).  
  
Oh yes, and pronunciation for the confused ('tis OK, I am often confused too).  
  
Desirae = Dez-er-ay  
  
Rae = Ray  
  
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Dib didn't know what was going on. His eyes were still clenched shut. He knew the desk had thrown him to the ground and knew it had returned to the classroom… that was what was supposed to happen, after all, and he had heard a mechanical whir after he had hit the ground. There was a knot in his stomach, and it was tightening with fear with each breath he took. Dib didn't want to open his eyes and see—he was afraid to see. He was afraid to know and face what horrors lay waiting for him. The Underground Classroom… a tremor shook through his body as he thought of all those days he had roamed the Skool halls, unaware of the human life stirring beneath his feet.  
  
At last a rough voice shook him from his stupor: "Hey, a new kid!" Dib's eyes snapped open and he righted himself, screwing up his eyes to better see in the darkness. A large boy was running at him, excitement portrayed in his bounding leaps, bright eyes, and wicked smile. He was short and stocky, with broad shoulders and a bald head, and his fleshy gut was hanging out of his green cargo pants… quite obviously his too-tight white tank-top couldn't keep his bulging tummy at bay. At last he stopped before Dib, panting and sweating profusely. He mopped the perspiration off his forehead with the back of his hand and with a final gasp managed to retain his composure, as other kids came and formed a circle around the sitting Dib, who flinched under their calculating stares.  
  
"A new kid," a girl with long yellow curls and dark brown eyes (heavily made-up) crooned. "How nice to meet you." The others snickered, as if knowing this was part of a game… Dib swallowed heavily and gave a shaky smile. He began to stand, but the fat bald one pressed a meaty hand against his chest and shoved him back to the ground. The circle rang with sharp laughter.   
  
"Going somewhere, new kid?" a thin, wiry boy inquired, greasy brown hair veiling his cool blue eyes. "Nah, he ain't going anywhere. We'll make sure of that," the brunette beside him answered, throwing her long straight hair over her shoulder with a quick snap of her head.  
  
"Look, I'd love to stay and all, but, um…" Dib began, and the fat one gave a deep throaty laugh. He swung a fist at him, but Dib jerked away at the last moment, and the punch missed and threw the fat kid off balance. His girth carried him against the curly-haired girl standing beside him, and with a squeal she took a ride to the ground with him. Dib saw the break in the circle, so he leapt to his feet and ran. Voices and pounding feet clashed as they realized they had let their prey loose. The chase was on.  
  
Dib didn't get very far, though. He didn't know this territory—he was still in awe of its existence!—and the darkness hindered his ability to maneuver around the place, especially since he didn't know where things were and of course couldn't see them very well. At last the gang caught him, and they had a purpose and a reason to mistreat him now—he wasn't just a new kid anymore, he was a new kid that dared to elude them and escape what was coming to him. They beat at him with a vengeance, swinging their fists and kicking their feet, until at last they stopped when a voice broke the air.  
  
"Hey, what are you doing?! Are you badgering a new kid again?! Get off!"   
  
The circle broke and opened to make way for a short girl with short raven hair and an authoritative look in her narrowed brown eyes. Her freckled face was barely visible in the dim light. "You heard me!" she said. "Leave him alone."  
  
The fat kid, who had been holding Dib against his gut to increase his helplessness against incoming attacks, reluctantly dropped him to the ground. "We was just playin' around, Rae," he mumbled, as a small child caught in a shameful act would tell a parent.  
  
"Playin' around, great, Tor," the girl called Rae laughed sardonically, "why don't you go play around and not hurt anyone this time." With an exchange of whispers, Tor and the kids threw resentful looks at Rae before scattering off. She looked down at Dib. "They didn't get you too bad," she said disinterestedly. "Why don't you get up, new kid."  
  
Dib obeyed, standing on his shaky feet and saying, "My name is Dib, thank you, and I'd like to go back to my classroom."  
  
Rae gave a short laugh. "Go back to your classroom, really? Well, Dib, I'm Desirae, or Rae as I am obviously known, and I'm here to tell you that you won't be going back to your classroom. Sorry."  
  
"Why not?" Dib cried, his heart sinking like a stone. He could almost feel the weight of the world on top of him, being destroyed by Zim. "I have to go back. Where's the teacher?"  
  
"Teacher!" Rae cackled. "Oh, you take the 'Underground Classroom' literally, do you? Well sorry, bucko. There's nothing here but kids and what we need to survive. The Skool doesn't have enough funding to give us real meals—at least they didn't back when I was up above—do you really think they'd have the money to fund a separate Skool or even 'classroom,' as they say, beneath it? You're not that stupid, are you?"   
  
"No…! What do your parents say or do?"  
  
"Nothing. They couldn't care less. Even if they did care, they're just told that we were such remarkable students that we were sent to a boarding school in Siberia. That usually works. People in this town are oblivious. They wouldn't notice if their house disappeared."  
  
"I guess you're right about that," Dib admitted, feeling defeated. "How do you get your food, anyway?"   
  
"Leftovers, garbage—any trash in the Skool is thrown down here through garbage chutes. We get by."  
  
"Has anyone ever gone back…'up above?'"  
  
"There's no way up besides the desks… some people have tried to escape by hitching a ride after a new kid is thrown down, but of course they'd be emerging in a classroom full of people, and they're always caught and returned. Once you're down here, you stay down here—they can't risk you going back because then you know and then you talk, and that gets the Skool in trouble."  
  
"But I need to go back up! There's an alien up there, and he—"  
  
Desirae laughed heartily. "No matter how many excuses you create, Dib, you can't go back. Come with me, I'll find you an empty bed… it's sleeping time."  
  
"Sleeping time! But it's still day!"  
  
"Dib, down here there is no day or night. We follow a schedule, and on this schedule's particular time, call it your 'night.' Now come on."  
  
Dib felt a churning in his stomach—so it was no different down here. His "crazy" ideas still weren't going to be accepted, even by people who were in a rather equally strange phenomenon. He was stuck down here in this dark place he barely knew anything about, with people already out to get him and only one person who offered help… Dib thought it would be best if he made friends with people soon, to better protect himself.  
  
"Thanks, Rae, for helping get those kids off of me," he said as he followed the girl, trying to match her quick pace as she went in search of a bed.  
  
"Yeah, whatever," she muttered, "I do it for all the new kids the first day. After that, you're on your own, buddy." She stopped in front of a makeshift bed: a shredded comforter and a lumpy pillow lain across a row of rickety crates.  
  
"Get some rest, Dib," Rae said as she began to strut away, checking to make sure the other kids were slipping into their beds too. "You're gonna need some good rest to learn some more about this place tomorrow—because there's a lot more to learn." Dib looked at his uncomfortable-looking bed, and then glanced back to see Tor grinning malevolently at him, lying on the bed beside his own. Dib gulped.  
  
He was on his own. 


End file.
